Drones are not only for personal use or nurturing one’s hobby, these amazing high tech flying devices have changed the pace of most industries today. Some argue that the use of these miniature helicopters are just a passing trend, but they’ve actually turned into a key piece of equipment for use in agriculture, weather forecasting, filmmaking, infrastructure management, rescue operations and many more commercial industries.

If you fall into any of these enterprises and are looking for solid reasons to get a UAV for your company, then you’ve come to the right place. Here are some great examples of how drones became a huge asset to the development of Medium and Small Enterprises (MSEs) and large ones too.

Drone-by-delivery Service

Amazon Prime Air just started utilizing this kind of drone technology wherein they deliver a parcel weighing less 5 pounds in 30 minutes or less. This type of service is not regulated by human pilots but has a unique electrical powered drone that flies and lands safely in locations where there are Amazon Prime Development Centers. The tiny aircraft can only fly by day and only in low wind weather conditions. Amazon is also working on improving safety regulations through various free private customer delivery trials and coordinating with policymakers to expand their reach. UPS and NASA are also using this type of drone service.

Single and Fast Transport System

Forget helicopters and private jets, Dubai’s Road and Transportation agency just created drones that can carry one single person weighing up to 100 kilograms for about 30 minutes. This is a game changer for V.I.P.s who need to avoid crowds. The passenger can simply get inside the drone and control it using onboard screens.

Wireless Internet

BT also invented Tethered drones that can transmit wifi signals in disaster areas to facilitate better communication and hasten emergency responses. This can lead to more survivors in a tragedy and faster and more relief during a time of desperate need.

Mark Zuckerberg and his team are also working on the Aquila, a solar-powered drone that can provide internet connection in remote areas in the world. The drone is made of carbon fiber and has a wingspan of 737. This is only in prototype phase for Facebook since they are still doing test runs and adding additional gear for it to function properly and efficiently.

Infrastructure Development

Several architectural firms are now using drone-related activities to capture images, video and other data to improve the value of their properties. The firms call this process “aerial mapping.” It’s where they get immediate and accurate data in order to tell a unique story to their clients and get a precise updates without having to visit their site in person. This is all done using 3D point clouds. Even more, this powerful device lets you use thermal imaging on your construction site so you can see problems that cannot be seen by the naked eye. Other great uses for the drone are creating seamless timelapses for site inspection purposes.

Whomever thought that drones were just a millennial fad could not be more wrong. Drone technology is advancing daily and pushing the boundaries of commercial industry, furthering innovation, creativity and success in a myriad fields.

With unprecedented expediency – the FAA today issued the first FAA/DOT Announce Small UAS Rule, which will take effect in August 2016. As always, they’ve scattered the info about in a very confusing, illogical, and dispersed manner. So, I’ll break it down for you by webpage and I’ll also provide direct downloads of all documents released today (see below!).

Overall, this is a step in the right direction and good for all of us out in the business world. After quickly reading through portions of the rule, I can see that many adjustments are going to be needed. The FAA acknowledges this as “…just our first step” – and rightly so. As capabilities and technology change, well – so must the rules. Without further ado, I give you a bunch of links and 3 downloadable PDF files!

]]>How to Hire a Commercial Drone Operatorhttp://www.multirotorusa.com/hire-drone-pilot/
Fri, 15 Apr 2016 18:33:22 +0000http://www.multirotorusa.com/?p=2707
I’ve spent many years as a commercial photographer in New York City and have provided a varied array of businesses with photos and video for use in visual marketing and advertising. My goal with each client is to help their particular business build and maintain a strong visual presence on the web and in print by using a style and context that will touch their target audience.

This short article is written from this perspective and is meant to help anyone who is in need of hiring a professional FAA approved commercial drone operator for aerial photography or video – whether it be for business purposes or for personal applications such as a weddings and other events.

How to Hire a Commercial Drone Operator for Photography or Video

Look at their Portfolio – Before hiring any visual media professional, you should look through their past work and be sure that you like what you see. Why? Well, you can expect that your final results will be very similar. This isn’t a scientific process, it is very subjective. Look over a portfolio and compare it to others. When you find one or more that you like, you’re ready to make contact with the drone photographer or videographer. Remember that just as in regular photography and video, anyone with the money to purchase equipment may run out and start selling you their services. For this reason, there is an enormous variance in the quality and professionalism of the work out in the market and it makes good sense to look over some media before wasting any time communicating with a drone operator.

Check their FAA Certification – Unlike regular photographers and video professionals, a commercial drone operator must be certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to operate legally. The operator must hold paperwork known as an FAA Section 333 Exemption and they must also have a licensed pilot on staff to conduct the drone operation. While it may certainly sound like a bit of overkill to require a real pilot for the operation of a small drone, the FAA’s reasoning is quite simple. Having a licensed pilot present during drone operations insures that the flight(s) conducted are in accordance with all local airspace restrictions. A licensed pilot has something he can lose if he operates illegally or irresponsibly — his license. Hiring an FAA certified drone operator is important in order to help insure that they operate legally and will not expose you or your company to any unnecessary risk or liability. To find out whether the company you’d like to hire holds an FAA certification, just check the complete list of certified companies and individuals here: Authorizations Granted Via Section 333 Exemptions

Make sure the Drone Operator is Insured – While not yet required by the FAA, it is important that any drone operator you hire holds drone insurance. General liability policies and umbrella policies do not cover drone operations unless it is stated on the policy expressly. Chances are your policy will NOT cover a falling drone either, and so it is important that someone hold coverage for this particular type of operation. Over the years I’ve been flying drones – I’ve seen drones drop out of the sky due to various failures a few times. If the drone operator is uninsured and an accident occurs, both the drone operator and you as the hiring party could be held legally responsible for any damage or injury. So the main question to ask is: Why would you expose yourself or your company to increased risk by hiring an operator who is uninsured? Professionals carry insurance.

Compare pricing – This is a given when hiring any contractor! Many individuals shop solely on price when quality is not a primary concern. The search for the lowest bidder happens in every industry and we encounter it all the time with drone operations. As a visual media professional, I of course, would like to be paid as much as possible for my time. So I hold a heavy bias on this topic. Some old crusty photographer stated to me once “They’ll ask you to come out with $10k worth of equipment to shoot, and then offer to pay you a few dollars.” Realize that a professional drone operator – like any freelance photographer or videographer, has significant operating expenses as an individual or small company. These expenses include equipment, liability insurance, travel, merchant fees, data storage, web hosting, advertising, and health insurance — to name a few. Those expenses don’t mean anything regarding value for the client, however. What’s important for a client to look at is the balance of final output, expertise at their craft, customer service, professionalism, and good, solid communication which a visual media professional provides.

Ask for a contract – It is incredible to me how many visual media providers operate without contracts. A contract is designed to protect both parties for the business transaction itself. In the case of photography and video it is essential to have everything in writing from the professional you hire so that there is no question regarding the deliverable you receive once the work is completed. Regarding drone operations, it is extremely important for the client to secure a written contract so that the work to be completed is outlined, and additionally – so that any parties needed to give permission for over-flight of property are listed on that contract. A drone operator may not fly over property for which over-flight permission is not given! Putting this information in writing protects both the hiring party and the drone operator from liability. For example, the drone operator must agree to keep the drone flight over the area which the client has control and ownership of. Should the drone operator deviate from that airspace and crash the drone into a neighboring property, causing damage – a written contract would provide the client with some protection from liability. A drone operator may not expose random persons or property not involved in the operation to risks that they are unaware of!

To avoid real aircraft with your drone, all you need to do is fly below 400 feet Above Ground Level (AGL) and it’s all good, RIGHT?

Wrong. It is a little more complicated than that.

If you enjoy flying drones, even as a hobby – you’ve unwittingly thrown yourself into the world of aviation. As an aviator, there are certain responsibilities that inherently come with the territory. The moment you lift off and send your drone into the heavens, you become responsible for any damage or injury it may cause to property or people. This includes other aircraft, and is no small responsibility. It is important to understand how your actions can affect the lives of others both in the air and on the ground.

In this post I’ll run through some things drone pilots can do to minimize the risk of having a midair collision with full scale aircraft. I will also provide you with links to some helpful documents and online tools you can use to be a better, more knowledgeable drone pilot. I have flown both drones and normal aircraft which range in size/complexity – from a Cessna 152 to a C-5 Galaxy. Therefore this writing comes from a shared perspective.

1. Understand Minimum Safe Altitudes as they apply to pilots of full scale aircraft

Why it’s important: There is a myth in the drone community that as long as you keep your drone below 400 feet above ground level (AGL), you will be clear of all full sized aircraft. This is simply not true. Knowing about federal regulations pertaining to Minimum Safe Altitudes for aircraft will help you understand where you may find full sized aircraft operating below 400 feet AGL.

Here are the FAA’s Legal definitions of Minimum Safe Altitude:
I will elaborate on these definitions as they can be confusing. The first thing you’ll notice are the terms: Congested Area, Uncongested Area, and Anywhere. The FAA has defined a Congested Area in order 8700.1 – the General Aviation Inspector’s Handbook, as follows:

Congested and Uncongested Areas: The congested nature of an area is defined by what exists on the surface, not the size of the area. While the presence of the nonparticipating public is the most important determination of congested, the area may also be congested with structures or objects. An area considered congested for airplane operations could be equally congested for helicopters. If an airplane flying over a congested area at less than 1,000 feet above ground level (AGL) is in violation of 14 CFR § 91.119(b), the area may also be a congested area for a helicopter conducting external-load operations. However, the most important word in this concept is over. Helicopters can operate over relatively small uncongested areas because of their maneuvering abilities.

That gets pretty specific in some regards, but leaves the term “Congested Area” as it applies to Federal Aviation Regulations, completely open to interpretation by the FAA on a case to case basis. I generally (and subjectively) interpret it this way: If an aircraft is flying over a bunch of people and/or buildings – it’s a congested area. If it is flying over trees with a home or occasional person, vessel, vehicle, or structure scattered here and there about the landscape, the area is uncongested. Operating in Congested and Uncongested Areas are not likely to pose problems for drone operators in most cases. WHY? Well because in those areas, the closest a full scale aircraft should be to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure is 500 feet. This is where the drone community gets the over-generalized and inaccurate 400 foot rule from.

Generally in a Congested or Uncongested area, if you operate your drone at or below 400 feet AGL, you should be clear of any full scale aircraft — assuming the operator of the full scale aircraft is following the law and completely on top of his altitude control. Keep in mind, aircraft pilots sometimes inadvertently dip below minimum altitudes. They are human, and humans make mistakes. Operating a drone at 400 feet AGL in an area where a full scale aircraft’s minimum altitude is 500 feet AGL gives us a fudge factor of only 100 feet. While that’s a lot for a drone, it is relatively easy to lose/gain 100′ in a regular aircraft.

Also, keep in mind the way the FAA mentioned helicopters and how the concept of “over” can be interpreted differently based on the maneuverability of a helicopter. For instance: if a helicopter is being operated in a rural area where homes are 3 miles apart – it may be perfectly legal and safe for the helicopter pilot to land in clearings found in areas of open land or even to fly below 500 feet AGL at times. Because of its maneuverability, a helicopter can accomplish flight maneuvers safely over a relatively small patch of area while maintaining a wide lateral distance from any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure. As a matter of fact – I was recently at a boating get-together on the Hudson river. I really wanted to fly my drone and get some footage over the crowd – but the fellas chipped in and hired their very own chopper pilot. Was it safe for me to fly my drone? NO, not at all. Here’s what that looks like over what would otherwise have been an awesome spot for a drone flight:

Boating on the Hudson River with helicopter flying low.

Now let’s discuss Anywhere: Anywhere not considered a Congested or Uncongested area is defined by the FAA as, well – Anywhere. This is where as drone operators, we can run into a situation that can spell trouble. WHY? If a full scale aircraft is flying Anywhere, let’s say over a deep forest area or even the ocean – the MSA is defined as: “Altitude allowing for emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the ground”. That means it is completely up to the pilot to determine his minimum altitude, and the altitude he or she determines to be safe may be well below 400 feet. I’ve done it myself over the ocean and the Arizona desert, tackling challenging altitudes of between 50 and 100 feet AGL. I posed no risk whatsoever to persons or property on the ground while flying at such low altitudes, as there was literally nothing around for miles. Was it dangerous and risky for myself and my passenger? Yes. Flying low is always dangerous. However, I was fully within the legal parameters outlined by the FAA regarding MSAs.

Aircraft often operate at low altitudes in places like Alaska, where a bush pilot may need to come in for a low pass to inspect a potential landing strip in the wilderness. There may also be a need to fly low to avoid weather or high mountain winds. Once again, pilot and his aircraft is always at risk, but as long as there is no undue hazard to people or property on the ground – it is perfectly legal. Most drone operators don’t understand this rule, and it has led to the myth that maintaining at or below 400 feet AGL with your drone will keep you clear of full scale aircraft at all times. I can assure you that maintaining at or below 400 feet AGL will NOT keep you clear of full scale aircraft at all times, and hopefully now you have a better understanding of why. Another important fact to note is that Military Aircraft do not always follow FAA rules and regulations with regard to MSAs. That reminds me of a real life story I have about recently seeing a full scale aircraft operating at an altitude below 400 feet AGL. Here goes.

Army Blackhawk at the Beach: Some time ago, I was flying my little drone leisurely out at the beach in Eastern Long Island. My wife was serving as the spotter and the sky was overcast with mild winds and weather. The sand was generally deserted and I was making passes between the beach and the ocean at altitudes ranging from 20 feet AGL to 200 feet AGL, at distances of no more than 800 feet away laterally. Our location was not in the immediate vicinity of any airports/airspace and there no real presence of humans to avoid on the sand. After the flight, pleased with my video footage, I landed the drone without incident and we were just hanging out enjoying the empty beach. Suddenly we began hearing some loud noise from the east.

An Army National Guard Blackhawk whizzed by the shoreline in a very speedy, loud, and cool looking fashion. They were flying the at about 200 feet AGL, maybe 500 feet away from the beach laterally. They were moving at around 50-60 knots in my estimate. This Blackhawk just flew through the exact airspace I was operating my drone in. I knew it was possible, but seeing it happen 10 minutes after I landed shocked me and woke me up to the reality that I could have just caused a midair collision. Was I being safe while flying? Yes. I wasn’t doing anything reckless, and my spotter was looking for birds and aircraft. Was the Blackhawk following the law? Yes, maybe he was a little closer in than 500 feet though. Would I have been able to avoid his aircraft had I been flying at the same time he passed? Maybe. Probably. I don’t know.

It would depend on 2 factors: 1) Whether or not myself or my spotter identified the aircraft in a timely manner. 2) Whether or not I would then take the appropriate action to avoid the collision. The fact that even I, both a drone and aircraft pilot with a decent amount of knowledge and experience, cannot answer that question with a resounding “YES, of course I could have avoided that Blackhawk with 100% certainty” — is a problem. The FAA needs to create some concrete laws, operating procedures, and minimum equipment requirements for drone pilot ASAP. Transponders and ADS-B might be dandy ideas.

Would I have been the one to blame had my drone impacted the Blackhawk? I’d say YES. WHY? In my opinion, full scale aircraft take precedence over drones because of the fact that they have one or more people on board and that the lives of those people should not be put at risk in any way because someone wants to fly a small scale unmanned aircraft or drone around. No flying operation conducted by a drone pilot is more important than the lives and safety of people that are in the air aboard full scale aircraft. Your ass is simply not on the line when you fly a drone, which is one reason people have an easy time being wreckless.2. Always Fly with a Spotter

Why it’s important: While flying your drone you are capable of paying close attention to it possibly nearby obstacles that are stationary. We’ve all been surprised by the occasional bird fly by. Moving objects like birds and aircraft are more difficult to detect because our field of vision and point of focus is limited. We are fixated on the drone and its flight path, which makes it impossible to scan 360 degrees. Therefore it is essential to have someone present who can focus on visually clearing the area of sky to the left, right, behind, and above your drone.

Not all spotters are created equal! Give your spotter a safety briefing – do not expect them to know what to do unless you’ve worked with them before. Explain to the spotter that he or she should not be staring directly at your drone the entire flight. A spotter’s job is to be aware of the location and directional path of your drone while constantly scanning the sky for dangers that might cause a safety issue for your flight. This entails scanning 360 degrees of skyline and being close enough to communicate verbally with the drone pilot. A good spotter will help maintain safety on every flight.3. Learn how to Read Aeronautical Charts

Why it’s important: Aeronautical charts depict the location of airports and different types of airspace. It is important for a drone operator to always know where the nearest airport is and what type of airspace is overhead. Therefore, knowing how to read an aeronautical chart is essential.

I will not go through every symbol on each type of chart, however, I will inform you that every aeronautical chart has a legend on it (click on image to the right!). The legend describes the meaning of all the symbols and airspace markings on the chart. I will also direct you to a publication which runs through each item on a chart in depth. There are 2 types of charts drone operators should be familiar with:

Sectional Aeronautical Charts: The aeronautical information on Sectional Charts includes visual and radio aids to navigation, airports, controlled airspace, restricted areas, obstructions, and related data. These charts are updated every six months. The legend above is from a Sectional Chart.

Terminal Area Charts: These charts provide a large-scale portrayal of selected metropolitan areas. The information found on these charts portrays much more detail than is found on the Sectional Charts because of the larger scale. These charts are intended for use by pilots operating from airfields within or near Class B and Class C airspace. Coverage of Terminal Area Charts are indicated by shaded boxes on the Sectional Chart index. Most of the symbols and graphics used carry over from the Sectional Chart. These charts are updated every six months.

Below is an image depicting the areas of the USA covered by each sectional chart (areas outlined in solid black line) and terminal area chart (magenta boxes). Drone operators should review both the sectional and terminal area charts for any location in which they plan to fly.4. Know what Type of Airspace Lies Above You

Why it’s important: Knowing the type of airspace in the area of your planned flight will help you determine if your flight can be conducted safely. Based on the type of air traffic that is likely to be using that airspace you can make an educated decision on whether or not to fly. Additionally, knowing the airspace will make you – the drone operator, aware of the location of the closest airport. This should be known before every flight.

Definitions:MSL: Mean Sea Level. Aircraft altitude relative to mean (average) sea level. This altitude does not affect drone operators as much as AGL. AGL is the number that is most important to operating a drone with regard to remaining clear of other aircraft.AGL: Above Ground Level. The actual distance of the aircraft from the ground.ATC: Air Traffic Control.IFR: Instrument Flight Rules. These rules govern the flight of aircraft in conditions which require the pilot to fly solely with reference to instruments – such as in bad weather.Statute Mile (SM): 5,280 feet, the standard used by U.S. drivers. When we talk MPH, we mean statute miles per hour.Nautical Mile (NM): 6,076 feet, or 1.1508 Statute Miles. The standard used by aircraft pilots and seamen to determine speed and distance in the air or on the water. 1 Knot is equal to 1.15 MPH.

Outline of the different types of airspace in the United States of America:Class A: Class A airspace is generally the airspace from 18,000 feet mean sea level (MSL) up to and including flight level (FL) 600 (60,000 feet), including the airspace overlying the waters within 12 nautical miles (NM) of the coast of the 48 contiguous states and Alaska. For now, this airspace is of no concern to drone operators – you may not fly your drone in Class A airspace. It is not legal to fly in this airspace without an ATC clearance to do so. If you happen to be flying off of a mountain top that is 18,000 feet MSL or higher, the rules regarding height Above Ground Level (AGL) will apply – so you will still be able to fly. Class A airspace is not depicted on Sectional or Terminal Area charts.

Class B: Class B airspace is generally airspace from the surface to 10,000 feet MSL surrounding the nation’s busiest airports in terms of airport operations or passenger enplanements. This is the type of airspace that will most concern the FAA with regard to drone operations due to the high volume of airline traffic. The lateral dimensions of each Class B airspace area is individually tailored and differs between locations. It is important to note that the central area of Class B airspace surrounding an airport begins at the surface. An ATC Clearance is required for all aircraft to operate in the Class B airspace, therefore you may not fly your drone within Class B airspace. If you wish to fly your drone within 5 miles of any airport, the FAA requires you to call the control tower of that airport. Class B airspace is depicted on Sectional and Terminal Area charts by a solid blue line:

The Class B airspace for KLAS (McCarran International Airport) is contained within the solid blue lines. The altitudes covered by the airspace are depicted by a ceiling number over a base number in feet MSL. So 100/SFC means that the airspace in that area extends from the surface to 10,000 feet MSL. 100/40 means the airspace in that sector extends from 4,000 to 10,000 feet MSL, and so on.

Class C: Class C airspace is generally airspace from the surface to 4,000 feet above the airport elevation (charted in MSL) surrounding those airports that have an operational control tower, are serviced by a radar approach control, and have a certain number of IFR operations or passenger enplanements. Each Class C area is individually tailored, however, the airspace usually consists of a surface area with a five NM radius, an outer circle with a ten NM radius that extends from 1,200 feet to 4,000 feet above the airport elevation, and an outer area without dimensions which denotes the range of the radar coverage provided. You may not fly your drone within Class C airspace. If you wish to fly your drone within 5 miles of any airport, the FAA requires you to call the control tower of that airport. Class C airspace is depicted on Sectional and Terminal Area charts by a solid magenta line:

The Class C airspace for KMYR (Myrtle Beach International Airport) is contained within the solid magenta lines. The altitudes covered by the airspace are depicted in the same fashion as that for Class B airspace.

Class D: Class D airspace is generally airspace from the surface to 2,500 feet above the airport elevation (charted in MSL) surrounding those airports that have an operational control tower. The configuration of each Class D airspace area is individually tailored and when instrument procedures are published, the airspace is normally designed to contain the procedures. Arrival extensions for instrument approach procedures (IAPs) may be Class D or Class E airspace. You may not fly your drone within Class D airspace. If you wish to fly your drone within 5 miles of any airport, the FAA requires you to call the control tower of that airport. Class D airspace is depicted on Sectional and Terminal Area charts by a dashed blue line:

The Class D airspace for KITH (Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport) is contained within the dashed blue lines. The altitudes covered by the airspace are depicted in the same square box containing a the 36 — this Class D airspace extends from the surface to 3,600 feet MSL.

Class E: If the airspace is not Class A, B, C, or D, and is controlled airspace, then it is Class E airspace. Class E airspace extends upward from either the surface or a designated altitude up to the overlying or adjacent controlled airspace. No matter where you are, Class E airspace is always somewhere above you! When designated as a surface area, the airspace is configured to contain all instrument procedures. Also in this class are federal airways, airspace beginning at either 700 or 1,200 feet above ground level (AGL) used to transition to and from the terminal or en route environment, and en route domestic and offshore airspace areas designated below 18,000 feet MSL. Unless designated at a lower altitude, Class E airspace begins at 14,500 MSL over the United States, including that airspace overlying the waters within 12 NM of the coast of the 48 contiguous states and Alaska, up to but not including 18,000 feet MSL, and the airspace above FL 600.

An aircraft does not need a specific ATC clearance to operate in Class E airspace, despite the fact that it is “controlled” airspace. Controlled airspace in the case of Class E serves the purpose of insuring that an aircraft will remain within airspace that has been pre-screened by the FAA to allow safe transition of that airspace with or without the help of Air Traffic Control. This is especially true when it comes to facilitating a safe transition from enroute altitudes to an airport environment under IFR conditions. WHOA, that’s confusing ! I will elaborate! To start, here are a few examples of Class E airspace depicted on aeronautical charts:

In the above image the magenta dotted line around Ingalls Airport on the left depicts Class E airspace starting at the surface and designated for that airport. The airport on the right shows standard Class D airspace with a magenta dotted area on the left. This area is to the lower left of the airport is a Class E extension to the Class D airspace. Its purpose is to provide protected airspace for aircraft flying instrument approaches into the airport. The airspace is considered protected because it has been pre-screened for obstacles.

Let’s highlight what’s important. To start – we won’t be flying our drone higher than 400 feet AGL anywhere, so we can eliminate the need to consider accidentally flying into Class E airspace which begins at 700 feet AGL or 1,200 feet AGL. The only thing left for us to be aware of is when Class E airspace is present at a Nontowered Airport with an Instrument Approach (such is the case with Watertown airport in the above image). In this case, Class E airspace begins at the airport surface and extends upward. The first step is to take a look at a current sectional map and to identify whether or not your planned flight is near a Nontowered Airport with an instrument approach. On a sectional map, airports with control towers are shown in blue and airports without control towers are shown in magenta. Magenta airports with a magenta dotted line around them indicate that within that area, Class E airspace starts at the surface.

A prime example of this is KHSP, Ingalls airport (see image above). The radius of this Class E airspace is approximately 5 nautical miles. There is no control tower for you as a drone pilot to call in this case, and so the big question is – can I fly my drone near this airport? Well, the moment you lift off the ground, you are technically flying in protected, controlled airspace. So the short and most conservative answer is NO, you cannot fly near this airport. What about the long answer then? Ok, I will give you my best subjective answer.

Would I fly near this airport? I would not fly a drone within 3 miles of the center of this airport under any circumstances. Low flying drones that close in could be both a danger and distraction to inbound or outbound aircraft. As you get closer to an airport, aircraft must transition through their cruise altitude and of course pass through our 400 feet AGL flying limit in order to land. Therefore, if you’re flying your drone too close to an airport between ground level and 400 feet AGL, you could easily end up in the flight path of an approaching aircraft. Between 3 and 5 miles from an airport I would fly my drone and always remain below 200 feet AGL. This would provide an additional buffer between the drone and aircraft flying into or out of the airport. Pilots make mistakes too, so you can’t always count on them to be at the right altitude at the right time. Leaving an extra buffer cannot hurt.

Why is 3 miles my magic number, you ask? Well, when aircraft fly an approach into an airport, they generally fly a 3 degree glide path until they land. Sometimes they fly steeper approach angles, sometimes shallower. On a standard 3 degree glide path, when the aircraft is 1 Nautical Mile from the beginning of the touchdown zone on the runway their altitude should be 318 feet AGL. At distance of 2 nautical miles from touchdown, the aircraft should be at an altitude of 636 feet. 2 nautical miles is equal to roughly 2.3 statute miles. So if you are 3 statute miles away from any part of the airport in this Class E airspace, I’d say that you’d probably be clear of any full scale aircraft making a normal approach into this airport.

I say probably for 2 reasons: 1) People screw up. Yes, even in full scale aircraft. Sometimes they fly lower than they should. It happens, especially near an airport. 2) Minimum Safe Altitudes, which I covered in point 1 above.

Aircraft altitude vs. distance while on a standard 3 degree glide path into an airport.

Remember that if the airport you’re considering flying near is in Class E airspace and out in the middle of nowhere (no towns, cities, or structures around), the pilot of an inbound or outbound aircraft might fly at an altitude lower than 400′ AGL. It would be completely legal to do so. Such might be the case in a place like Alaska, or at a small airport in the middle of the mountains or desert. If you have any doubts about whether or not you should be flying in the vicinity of an airport in Class E airspace, contact the local FAA Flight Standards District Office FSDO and ask to speak with an operations inspector – OR just don’t fly. The FAA needs to write some very clear cut laws regarding drone operations near smaller airports as their current guidance on Know Before You Fly is not regulatory, nor is it detailed enough.

Class G: Uncontrolled airspace or Class G airspace is the portion of the airspace that has not been designated as Class A, B, C, D, or E. It is therefore designated uncontrolled airspace. Class G airspace extends from the surface to the base of the overlying Class E airspace. Although ATC has no authority or responsibility to control air traffic, pilots should remember there are visual flight rules (VFR) minimums which apply to Class G airspace. This airspace presents no specific issues/problems for drone operators, UNLESS – there happens to be an airport nearby. A prime example of this is 913, West Liberty Airport (see below). In this case, I’d personally use the same guidance I outlined above for an airport located within Class E airspace. However, the FAA really needs to issue a regulation to cover the flight of drones in the vicinity of small airports.

West Liberty Airport is an example of an airport with Class G airpspace above it. The Class E airspace over this airport begins at 14,500 feet MSL.

Special Use Airspace:

Special Use Airspace will exist in locations where certain types of aerial activity must be confined, or where limitations may be placed on transitioning aircraft that are not part of those activities. I will provide you with a quick outline of the different types of special use airspace. If you plan your drone flight in the vicinity of such airspace it is important for you to read up in detail about the particular restrictions associated with the airspace you are near. You would do so by accomplishing one or more of the following: reading the information on the appropriate National Aeronautical Charting Group (NACG) en route charts, sectional aeronautical charts, reading a current Airport Facilities Directory, checking Notices to Airmen (Notams), and possibly contacting the agency in charge of the special use airspace in your area.

Examples of how special use airspace is depicted on Sectional and Terminal Area charts.

Prohibited Areas: Flight of any/all aircraft is prohibited in the defined dimensions of these areas. These areas are established for reasons of security or national welfare. Examples of this type of airspace include Camp David and the National Mall in Washington D.C. No drone flying within this airspace under any circumstances.

Restricted Areas: Areas where operations are hazardous to nonparticipating aircraft and where flight of aircraft, while not completely prohibited, is subject to restrictions. Restricted areas may contain unusual, often invisible, hazards to aircraft. For example: artillery firing, aerial gunnery, or guided missiles. In order to fly in this airspace you must either be routed through by an IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) clearance, or have authorization from the agency controlling the airspace. No drone flights within this airspace are permissible unless you speak to the controlling agency and get permission to fly in the airspace. Depending on the specific airspace, you may be able to fly a drone below the floor of the airspace.

Warning Areas: Similar to restricted areas, however, the U.S. government does not have sole jurisdiction over the airspace. Warning areas begin 12 nautical miles from the coast of the United States and extend outward, covering defined dimensions. It may cover domestic or international waters, or both. No drone flights within this airspace are permissible unless you speak to the controlling agency and get permission to fly in the airspace. Depending on the specific airspace, you may be able to fly a drone below the floor of the airspace.

Military Operations Areas (MOAs): Airspace with defined vertical and lateral limits established to separate military training activities from IFR traffic. MOAs are defined on the backs of sectional aeronautical charts with the times of operation, altitudes affected, and the controlling agency. Drones should not be operated in defined airspace for MOAs.

Alert Areas: This airspace contains a high volume of pilot training or unusual aerial activity. Drones can be flown under this airspace without issue as long as all other airspace regulations are adhered to (operating near airports, Class A, B, C, D, E, G).

Controlled Firing Areas (CFAs): CFAs contain activities, which, if not conducted in a controlled environment, could be hazardous to nonparticipating aircraft. Not charted and not really a concern for drone operators. Chances are, you’ll encounter armed people on the ground if you get near airspace affected by a controlled firing exercise.

Other Types of Airspace (yes, there’s even more)

I will not cover all of these, only the ones I think a drone operator should be familiar with.

Military Training Routes (MTRs): These are used by military aircraft to maintain proficiency in tactical flying. They are depicted on Sectional Charts and Low Altitude IFR charts. MTRs are usually below 10,000 feet MSL and flown at speeds in excess of 250 knots. Their identifiers on charts either start with an IR or a VR followed by a number – like this: VR1289. Those routes with no segments above 1,500 feet AGL are defined by 4 numbers (ie. VR3943). MTR’s with one or more segments above 1,500 feet AGL are identified by 3 numbers (ie. IR390, VR240). Do not fly your drone near MTR’s as military aircraft do not necessarily abide by FAA minimum safe altitudes and may operate well below 400 feet AGL and very high speeds. Colliding with an aircraft moving at over 250 KTS could prove disastrous for the pilot of that aircraft.

Military Training Routes (MTR’s) shown in grey.

Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs): These are issued as a flight data center (FDC) Notice to Airmen (NOTAM). You check them by entering the airport closest to where you are into the FAA NOTAM retrieval website. They will be located under the ARTCC Notices, TFRs and Special Notice section. A TFR NOTAM begins with the phrase “FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS”, followed by the location of the temporary restriction, effective time period, area defined in statute miles, and altitudes affected. The NOTAM also contains the FAA coordination facility, telephone number, the reason for the restriction, and other information. A drone operator should always check for these prior to going out flying. TFRs are issued for the following reasons: protect people/property in the air or on the ground, protect operations of disaster relief aircraft, prevent unsafe congestion of sightseeing aircraft above an incident or event, protect the President, Vice President, or other public figures, and for various other reasons.

Parachute Jump Aircraft Operations: These are published in the Airport/Facility Directory (A/FD). Sites that are used frequently will also appear on sectional charts (commonly referred to as “sectionals”). Drone pilots will want to stay well clear of these areas to avoid a midair collision with a parachuting human. Where there are frequent operations involving parachute jumping or glider operations, there will be a little parachute or glider posted right next to the airport as well. See those here:

National Security Areas (NSAs): These are comprised of airspace with defined vertical and lateral dimensions established at locations where there is a requirement for increased security and safety of ground facilities. Prohibitions are disseminated via NOTAM and drone operators should remain clear of this airspace.5. Visit your Local FBO and Take a Flying LessonWhy it’s important: For around $200 you can go to your local airport’s Fixed Base Operator (FBO in aviation speak) and set up an introductory flight lesson. I recommend this for every drone pilot because it will help you understand what the pilot of a real aircraft sees and what tasks must be accomplished to pilot an aircraft. As drone technology progresses, there will eventually be a complete merge with full scale aviation – so the sooner you learn about real flying, the more ahead of the game you will be. From a safety aspect, knowing a about what goes inside an aircraft will make you a more competent drone pilot from the ground.6. Familiarize Yourself Flight Operations Unique to your Local AreaWhy it’s important: Depending on where you fly your drone you may encounter localized flight operations that present unique hazards to be aware of. Such operations include things like small heliports at hospitals, police aviation units, private air strips, small military units such as Air/Army National Guard, and areas needing specific operating rules created by the FAA for unusually dense air traffic.

I’ll give you a quick example of one of the most busy traffic areas in the United States, located right in my home town – NYC. In the vicinity of Manhattan we have the convergence of Class B airspace from 3 major airports: JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark International. These airports handle an enormous volume of airline traffic and many of you have probably flown into one of them and noticed the scale of operations here. In addition to these there major airports we have a few smaller ones which handle a lot of corporate jet traffic. Airports like Teterboro and Westchester County insure that our air traffic controllers are among the sharpest and busiest on the planet.

You’d think that would be a sufficient amount of traffic to pack into such a small area, however we also have many small airports nearby and a lot of private airplane and helicopter traffic. Some of that traffic transitions through the airspace and some of it is very localized. Of specific concern to drone operators is the air traffic directly around Manhattan. Everyone wants to fly their drones to get a view of the Manhattan skyline. Without giving it a second thought, one would gather that flying over the Hudson or East Rivers would be a grand idea. Turns out it is definitely not a safe or permissible thing to do. However in order to know this, you’d have to do a little research to find out why.

The airspace over the Hudson and East Rivers is filled with VFR airplane and helicopter traffic. This includes tourism helicopters, the NYPD, local pilots, and businessmen commuting to and from Manhattan. There are several heliports on Manhattan and there is even a float plane service that lands Cessna Caravans on the East River. For this reason, the FAA has reserved the airspace from the Surface up to but not including 1,300 feet for VFR aircraft operations. They have in fact outlined this special airspace on Sectional and Terminal Area Charts as well as in a PDF document. Since this airspace has been outlined for special use by full scale aircraft, flying a drone in any of that airspace (even below 400 feet AGL) could put a drone operator in direct conflict with a full scale aircraft. Knowing this information is your responsibility the moment you elect to fly a drone.

This example is an extreme one, as there are very few areas as congested and complex as this one. In Manhattan operations are so specific that even local heliports such as this one on 30th Street, have their own particular departure and arrival procedures. For a drone operator to fly safely, he or she must familiarize themselves with the conditions in their area. The details of local operations are important for insuring safe flights for everyone. If you have trouble finding information about your local area, the best thing I can recommend is to sit down for a few minutes with a flight instructor and ask them to help you become familiar with the unique hazards you may face when out flying your drone.

Hopefully the information I’ve provided here helps you become a safer drone pilot and gives you a peak into the amount of knowledge it takes to operate full scale aircraft safely in our airspace system. Below are links that will be helpful in building your understanding of everything discussed in this article.

UAV Coach – UAV Boot Camp Course – This is a great course for someone who wants to sit down and have a lot of information infused into them. However, unlike all the awesome info I’ve provided here, it is not free ($89). However, I wouldn’t include it here if it wasn’t a solid resource.

SkyVector – Another online resource with aeronautical maps and an airport directory.

FAA Aeronautical Chart User’s Guide – Online information from the FAA to help you decipher all those esoteric scriptures and symbols you see on Sectional and Terminal Area charts.

FAA Airport Facility Directory – Although an AFD is included in 2 of the links above, this is where the official info is! If you need to look up the phone number for a control tower or other facts about an airport, you will find it here.

FAA Charts (raster graphics) – Who says the Federal Government doesn’t give away anything for free? Here you can find extremely high resolution TIFF images of all the available aeronautical charts. A very cool resource.

Disclaimer: These guidelines do not guarantee you will remain clear of full scale aircraft and are meant to serve the interest of safe drone operations. The drone operator alone will be responsible for piloting his/her drone in a safe and responsible manner, and to remain clear of other aircraft, persons, and property.

So another guy decided to take it upon himself to shoot down his neighbor’s Drone. The idiocy behind this Drone shooting has pissed me off enough to write this glorious article. I will begin with an easy to digest list of reasons that will help people unfamiliar with Drones understand why they (probably) aren’t being spied on.

7 Reasons that Drone Isn’t Spying on You:

You’re much less pretty, handsome, or interesting than your parents led you to believe you are.

No one is so interested in you that they’d pay someone to spy on you. Most strangers wouldn’t want to spy on you without being paid.

Drones generally use cameras with wide angle lenses. These lenses are designed to capture landscapes. They capture a big wide view of things, and unless the drone is literally 10-20 feet from you – its user won’t see too much.

Drones can be seen, heard, and easily detected – making them terrible tools for spying. People who spy on you will not use stark raving white drones, or grey ones, or black ones. Not even green ones. You will not see or hear their equipment. People conducting surveillance generally use quiet, high end DSLR style cameras with expensive zoom lenses that allow them to photograph you from a distance without being detected.

Most people are just flying their drones for fun as a hobby or pastime. Some are even photographers and video professionals.

Perverts now have internet porn, so there’s no need to go through the expense and trouble of flying a Drone just to get off.

Battery life on most Drones is 12-15 minutes. Wasting that precious time spying on you takes away from the fun.

I can rationalize with people all I want, but there are still some folks out there that my reasoning just won’t be good enough for. So let me make some suggestions for Drone pilots and for those concerned about their privacy.

NAY — let me not make suggestions, but provide clear, precise instructions on how to handle things.

What to do if you’re the Drone Pilot:

Fly over uninhabited spaces. Never fly over private property without permission.

If you want to fly over or even near private property – TALK to a few people who own properties where you’ll be flying. Let them know who you are and tell them why you’re flying — for fun, take photos of sunset, etc…

If they express interest, let them watch. Ask them if they want a photo of their house from the air.

If they give you any opposition, just let them know you’ll remain well clear of their property line and won’t take any photos or video of them or their family.

If that isn’t good enough and they won’t leave you alone – call the police.

What to do if you you’re the person who wants to SHOOT down the Drone:

Go and TALK to the person flying the Drone. Express your concerns.

Realize that you can’t just go around shooting at people’s property. It isn’t legal and the Drone pilot is surely not worth wasting time with the police or in jail.

If the Drone operator is rude, or inconsiderate – then call the police and have them work for you instead of against you.

Calm, level headed communication will solve most issues!

So, with all this talk of Drones not being good tools for spying, you might want to know – What would be a great tool for spying?

GLAD YOU ASKED! My choice as a photographer:

Sony A7s – Because it can essentially see in the dark. Performs ridiculously well in low light.

But that stuff is expensive. So if you’re paranoid about people spying on you and you really want to get freaked out, check out the Nikon COOLPIX P900 – it has 83X optical zoom and costs around $600. If someone wants to see you from very, very, very far away – this will do the trick. Here’s what it can do:

The FAA just released the most relaxed proposal to date regarding the future rules and regulations which will govern the use of civilian Drones for commercial operations. You can read the FAA’s proposed drone regulations here: FAA Drone Rules Proposal

As a commercial pilot and CFII, I’m a little concerned to say the least. I feel I need to address this directly with the FAA, so here’s my quick letter to any FAA employee who may find this post:
———————————–
Dear FAA,

Just to be clear: You are proposing that someone without any actual aeronautical rating will be permitted to fly a drone for COMMERCIAL purposes, with a weight of up to 55 POUNDS, at a TOP SPEED of 100MPH, just so long as they pass a government designed and administered written exam and agree as gentlemen/women to keep that beast below 500ft and clear of airspace. Do you think that safe operations can be assured without further aeronautical training and be monitored effectively via the honor system?

Signed,

Worried Pilot
———————————–

A few things to note if these proposed regulations become real regulations:

55LBS will dissipate a large amount of energy when it comes down from 500 feet at 100mph.

FAA written exams (even for real pilots) aren’t very challenging. A real pilot proves his/herself in the aircraft and by displaying competence in the presence of several other people who possess experience and judgement.

People without a background in real aviation lack an understanding of and respect for the risks associated with flight. This lack of understanding and knowledge will put lives at risk unnecessarily in the air and on the ground.

Model aviation has been around for many, many years. Never in the history of model aviation has it been so easy for anyone who feels like it to put a Drone into the air. Like real aviation, flying models used to take time to learn and gain an understanding of. This helped foster competent operators with experience and skill. This is absent when we’re speaking about Drones. People with little to no experience are afforded advanced capabilities that they could never before have had without putting in a lot of time to learn. This is important to consider.

Every hipster with a few dollars to their name will be out there starting some sort of Drone business. Yes, buying a Drone will instantly turn people into aerial photographers and videographers, news reporters, and emergency response personnel.

Media companies ranging from television, radio, and blogs will have Drones. I imagine evening news will never be the same. Neither will accident sites. As if reporters weren’t irritating enough already.

Now while I may surely rub some people the wrong way, I do believe I’ve made some objectively valid points in this text which should not be ignored by the public or the FAA.

In it’s initial proposal(s) the FAA was considering the requirement of a Private Pilot’s license for individuals that intend to operate Drones commercially. I think this is a good idea (yeah, yeah – easy for me to say because I have my ratings). Some people voiced their opinion that this was financially restrictive and that many would be barred from entry into the business of flying Drones due to the expense. I do understand that position for sure – it is costly to get your Private Pilots License. However, I think that real aviation learning and experience would be invaluable in adding to the safety of operations conducted by the commercial drone pilots of our present and near future.

Aviation has always had barriers to entry. I think that’s a good thing. Imagine what would happen if they release the flying car and anyone could fly to work. I’d ride a bicycle and look out for falling cars. In the case of flying Drones for commercial purposes, if a full blown license it too expensive and too much work – maybe require applicants to solo at least.

Nothing changes one’s perspective of aviation like being alone in an airplane for the very first time without a flight instructor. His/her voice is still in your head, but the only one up there in god’s great heavens that will get your ass safely on the ground is you.

Well the FAA’s new “Know Before You Fly” video is pretty interesting. I laughed out loud watching it, but I will let you draw your own conclusions.

It appears our friendly neighborhood FAA has launched not only this video, but a website dedicated to drone pilots and drone flight operations – http://www.knowbeforeyoufly.org/

On this website the FAA offers guidance to drone operators. The guidelines are broken up into recreational, commercial, and public service sector flight operations. As to the legal force and enforceability of the guidance provided on this website – well, I don’t know. I don’t think these are laws. I don’t believe they’re currently in the FAR’s. I also question whether this website will actually reach the majority of the members of it’s intended audience. Will a tourist from Canada who buys a DJI Phantom at B&H in Manhattan be held to these rules? Who is responsible for disseminating this information? Who is to blame if the information doesn’t reach the owner of a particular make/model or slapped together home built version of a MultiRotor.

Finally I am confused as to the enforceability of of these rules? Guidelines? What exactly do we have here FAA? Who’s responsible for what? Will the NYPD now be tasked with enforcing grey federal rules, laws, text on a website? Where do we seek the answers to these esoteric questions?

I’m still laughing, but seriously – things need to be crystal clear to everyone and currently they are not. The FAA seems a bit confused in their actions and decisions – and rightly so. We are at a point where the technology has quickly sailed past the current aviation laws, rules, and regulations. It is a difficult moment and I’d say the primary and most important concern regarding all drone operations is to insure the safety of those in the air and on the ground.

If you concentrate on those 2 things, you’ll know what you have to do next my fearless FAA rule makers. What you’ve currently implemented is thin, difficult to interpret, and questionable to enforce. That is my humble opinion.

]]>10 Ways to Avoid Being Annoying with your new DJI Phantomhttp://www.multirotorusa.com/dji-phantom-dont-be-annoying/
Sat, 02 Aug 2014 02:59:42 +0000http://www.multirotorusa.com/?p=2374
Ok folks, at this point there is really no way to fight it – so I am going to address this directly. Why, you ask?

Well, gone are the times when the only choices for getting up into the air with a MultiRotor Drone were either: 1) Fork over $10k+ for a ready to fly Draganflyer, or 2) Do all the research and learning necessary and then build one yourself. At this point in time a novice with no knowledge of radio control or Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules and regulations can order themselves up a DJI Phantom 2 Quadcopter for $679 and be in the air the same day. It is for those folks that I’m writing these 10 tips. While my headline here is meant to be a bit funny, the real intent of this list is to provide some practical tips that will keep people who are new to all this and those around them safe, and having fun. Fun is the point, isn’t it?

Here’s the short list on how not to be “one of those DJI Phantom guys(or girls)”:
1. Please understand that flying is a privilege and not a right.
2. Never fly over people.
3. Read your entire manual and the pilot training guide published by DJI before taking your first flight.
4. Do not rely on GPS position hold, return to home, or altitude hold to get you out of a bad situation.
5. Crawl before you walk. Or, flap those little wings before you go supersonic.
6. Don’t take your Phantom to the nearest well known landmark and go flying with it.
7. Please, pretty please – do not claim to run an aerial photography or video business the day after you purchase you Phantom.
8. Be aware of real air traffic in your area and stay below 400′ above ground level (AGL).
9. When you’re out flying and strangers ask you questions, just be cool.
10. Keep yourself and others clear of the propellers.

Here’s the long version:

1. Please understand that flying is a privilege and not a right. At this point in time hobby flying and commercial drone usage of our lightweight MultiRotors is a topic that is under attack by the media, politicians, and the Federal Aviation Administration. We need to be on our best behavior when in public and we must respect the fact that our privilege to fly may be heavily restricted if our actions are thoughtless. You are responsible for any damage or injuries caused by your Phantom, so live up to that responsibility.
2. Never fly over people. By this I mean don’t fly directly over them at any altitude. The full weight of the Phantom 2 fitted with an H3-3D gimbal, a GoPro, a battery, an iOSD Mini and a video transmitter is around 3 lbs. When dropped from the heavens, 3lbs can hurt. It can also cause serious injury. You do not have the right to expose people to that sort of risk. Also, don’t forget to think about the wind. Falling objects won’t fall straight down when it is windy so it’s a good idea to not fly over people within a radius of at least 25 feet. If you don’t know how to judge distances, just stay really far far away from being over anyone.

3. Read your entire manual and the pilot training guide published by DJI before taking your first flight. Don’t just use the quick start manual and run out there to fly your new plastic wonder. There are a lot of details about the operation of your Phantom that you should know before you go out on your first flight. This advice comes from my experience as a real pilot and CFII: As a general rule, any time you put any sort of vehicle in the air – you should know as much as possible about the operating parameters and limitations of that aerospace vehicular contraption. Study a bit when you’re on the ground, because once that bad boy is airborne you’ll have no choice but to learn really fast. Better to learn when there’s no pressure.

4. Do not rely on GPS position hold, return to home, or altitude hold to get you out of a bad situation. Quick lesson: the GPS receiver in your DJI Phantom needs to be locked onto at least 7 GPS satellites in order to provide guidance. Therefore, any time the receiver doesn’t have 7 or more satellites the GPS features of the Phantom will not function. So the simple solution is to always maintain positive control of your drone. By this I mean – fly it. Don’t “let” it do anything. Be in control of it and be sure that you maintain an awareness of it’s position (altitude, distance) and direction/speed of flight at all times. Keep that hot tamale in visual range there too, Maverick. Don’t just fly off the video transmitter without being able to locate your Phantom visually (line of sight).

5. Crawl before you walk. Or, flap those little wings before you go supersonic. In order to maintain positive control of your drone, you’ve got to put in some practice time. Don’t immediately take it out and try to impress your friends. Instead, devote some time to practice flying in a safe environment. Get comfortable with all the controls. Be able to fly nose in (little Phantom pointing right at you) and nose out. Practice climbs and descents. Practice flying backwards, sideways. Practice pivoting around the yaw axis. Fly circular patterns in both directions as well as figure 8’s. Get familiar with how your machine handles in light wind and heavier winds. Realize that the wind tends to increase in strength the higher you go. Once you’ve put in enough practice time, you’ll know it from the confidence you have with your Phantom. You will learn and know your limits. As a general rule, if you aren’t sure whether you should be flying, it’s safest to just not fly. Practice will make you a better, safer pilot and you’ll have more fun at it too.

6. Don’t take your Phantom to the nearest well known landmark and go flying with it. People need attention. They want attention. You want attention. Get that attention some other way. National landmarks are a bad place to go flying without permission. We don’t need any more negative publicity, so steer clear no matter how much you need to have someone tell you how cool your last flight video was. If you must fly at landmarks, get written permission from the controlling authority first. Don’t be a turd sandwich or a giant douche. Be cool.

7. Please, pretty please – do not claim to run an aerial photography or video business the day after you purchase you Phantom. Wait at least 2 weeks. Going out and buying a camera doesn’t make you a photographer. So, going out and buying a camera and a drone at the same time surely doesn’t make you an aerial photographer. Why the hell would it?

8. Be aware of real air traffic in your area and stay below 400′ above ground level (AGL). The Phantom has a few safeguards to prevent users from flying near airports and above certain altitudes. Please do not rely on these safeguards, because as we discussed earlier – they may not operate properly at all times. You – the pilot, should be aware of all local air traffic and restrictions that apply where you fly. Flying below 400′ AGL is a good starting guideline, however being in the vicinity of an airfield may mean that you shouldn’t fly at all in that area. If in doubt, just ask the agency controlling your local airport or helipad. It is critical that hobbyists be aware of the national airspace system and maintain legal separation distances from all aircraft. One little DJI Phantom could destroy a jet engine if ingested through the intake. Not good. Very not good. Once you take a 3 pound plastic toy and fly it through the air, it becomes much less of a toy.

9. When you’re out flying and strangers ask you questions, just be cool. This one is about encountering annoying people other than Phantom pilots. But still, when you’re flying the white plastic wonder – it is best not to annoy those that are annoying you. For the most part, folks who have never seen one of these will simply not know much about them and will want to ask a few questions. If flying and talking to someone distracts you, tell them to hang on a moment. Then land and say hello. Don’t crash because an onlooker absolutely, positively, must have a word with you! I’ve had folks ask me a dozen questions while I was trying to concentrate on flying and maintaining control of my quadcopter. One of the top questions I get while flying my machines – “are you gonna use that thing for spying?” My response – “hey lady, you can see it and hear it, can’t you? Well if you can see it and hear it, it’s not too good at spying is it?” The poor public has been brainwashed by the media, so interacting at the local park with us fun flyers can shed a positive light on the “DRONES” that the media and politicians have terrified them with. Friendly drones. Nice drones. Nice drone pilots. Not spies.

10. Keep yourself and others clear of the propellers. They look all friendly and feel nice when they’re not moving, but they aren’t friendly at all. As a hard rule: if you Phantom is on and you need to pick it up to handle it – put down your Transmitter (aka TX, remote control, or radio). This will prevent you from accidentally starting the motors while you’re in a bad spot. Also, always turn on the TX first and the Phantom second. The reverse to turn things off – Phantom off first and TX second. For a little bit of added safety, DJI sells prop guards that are designed to protect the props from impact. They offer side impact protection, but you can still touch the props from the top or bottom and cut those grubby little fingers of yours – so be careful. Also, as a side note – watch out for children. Sometimes they’ll see a MultiRotor hovering, get all excited and run directly at it with their arms outstretched.

I haven’t posted in quite awhile and I’ve never posted a product for the sake of posting a product until now. I’d like to state that I am not being compensated in any way by Ecks Multirotor and that this is NOT a paid advertisement. I’m posting this because the new EXO 440 Recon frame caught my attention and I think it’s definitely worth a look. Cameron from Ecks is a great guy and he does some interesting and original work in the area of frame design so I always check out his Facebook Page to see what it is he’s up to at the moment.

In the past Cameron was kind enough to sell me a prototype 2-axis gimbal for my Sony NEX5R. I bothered him about it because he was the only one on the market making a gimbal out of 2 solid pieces of billet aluminum. It is a piece of artwork. That said, his work is top notch and I urge you to check out his website and vimeo page when you get a chance and contact Cameron if you have any questions about this extremely well designed frame.

Update: March 7th, 2014 – The FAA will be filing an appeal. Read the info in their link to UAS Operations as well. They have valid points and I may have sounded the celebration alarm a bit too soon.

Commercial Use of Drones is Now LEGAL!

A federal judge has ruled today that commercial drones are legal in U.S. skies, citing that the Federal Aviation Administration has not made any legally enforceable rules against such operations. Great news for us photographers/cinematographers! We can now charge for work without fear.

To be perfectly clear, this ruling applies to the hobby RC type drones you see here on this website – NOT to full sized military drones. So calm down naysayers, no one will be flying over your house in a full sized turbine aircraft tomorrow morning. That said, they may well be flying over the house your neighbor put for sale to take photos for the real estate company handling the listing.

The ruling came out of the FAA’s case against Raphael Pirker (we know him as Trappy). The FAA attempted to fine Trappy $10,000 for the conduct of his flight operations during the filming of a commercial for the University of Virginia. The case has been going on for some time and Trappy was defended by our friend and fellow local flyer, Brendan Schulman. Mr. Schulman’s main argument was based on the fact that the FAA had no enforceable regulation or rule applying to model aircraft or in classifying model aircraft as Unmanned Aircraft (UAS) according to current FAA guidelines. The full decision text is here: FAA v. Raphael Pirker.

The FAA still has the opportunity to appeal the decision – and if it does, the case will go to the Washington D.C. U.S. Court of Appeals.

My take on what this means for those of us out there that want to make some money with our lightweight flying machines:

Green light, GO! Get out there and utilize your investment – but do so with care and professionalism.

There are still restrictions. Stay below 400′ Above Ground Level (AGL), stay clear of real aircraft, and the National Airspace System.

Don’t piss people off or put people on the ground in danger. You copter can fall out of the sky at any time, make sure if it does there is no one nearby.

Keep in mind that there are no laws restricting us right now. This is nice, this is the way we want it! If people go out there and do stupid things like our reporter flying at the active accident scene, the public will scream for regulation. If someone really crashes into a person or crowd. The public will ask the government – how are you going to keep me safe from these fools? We’ll be slammed with rules immediately.

Educate your fellow flyers. Many don’t know the finer details of where controlled airspace starts and ends, many don’t know that they can’t rely on their copter’s GPS or failsafe functionality. Let them know kindly and try to foster a responsible (but always fun!) flying environment.

My preaching is over! See you out there in the field – filming, flying, fpv’ing, or whatever it is you do!

Every time there’s an idiot out there that does something to screw up this hobby and potentially my photography/video profession, I tend to take it personally. There was the Fool in Manhattan, another random nitwit flying over a crowd of people, and now our current journalist friend here. Thank you Mr. Pedro Rivera for bringing QuadCopters and Drone Photography into the public eye once again under a negative light.

The story goes like this: Mr. Pedro Rivera works as a freelance journalist (does that mean unemployed?) for WFSB Television in Connecticut. He was flying his little plastic toy Phantom 2 Vision over the site of a fatal accident scene; with a dead body still on site. The Hartford, CT Police Department were concerned for the victim’s privacy and in their attempt to control the accident site they asked him to stop flying in the area. Police then questioned Rivera and he was allowed to leave. He stated to police that he was not filming/photographing as a journalist for WFSB Television, but as a private citizen. Right, sure. He’s chasing accidents with a Phantom because he’s got nothing better to do with his time. I feel sorry for his family then. The only ID he had on his person was his WFSB TV ID card.

Turns out WFSB Television saw it fit to suspend Pedro Rivera for a week, while Connecticut Police investigated whether he did anything illegal. The police informed news agencies that they were concerned about officer safety as well as the possibility of the drone intruding on the victim’s privacy. Valid points – no family wants to see journalist post bodies of their dead relatives — anywhere or any time. What about public safety though guys? Rivera was flying in a populated area on a busy street with cars, pedestrians, accident victim(s), and emergency personnel running around. Not the best place to put a 2.5 lb flying white (potential) falling rock 200 feet into the air (the altitude he was allegedly flying at).
In response, Rivera hired Norm Pattis – a Connecticut lawyer who’s specialty is civil rights violations, to file a lawsuit for lost wages and damages. So that could cost the CT PD $300 maybe, as the guys photos don’t look too good and his reasoning for being where he was seems pretty flawed. Think I’m going a little hard on him? As I said, the guy’s actions offend me as a MultiRotor pilot and photographer. He ended up making National headlines with this stunt. Fools get attention in these here parts.

I will now entertain you with quotes from Pedro Rivera and my responses to his statements in Bold.

“It’s absolutely ridiculous. I wasn’t charged, I didn’t violate anything. They went after my job,” Rivera said referencing the Police. “I think what happened to me falls in the category of the war on cameras by the police. Whenever the police are videotaped, they try to detain people and confiscate the camera.” – Yes Mr. Rivera, you did violate something. There are laws that protect public safety. For example I can legally own a bow and arrow, but I can’t legally go out in front of my home and shoot that arrow straight into the air — because it could land on someone. The Police, however much they piss me off, have an obligation to control an accident scene and provide services that insure public safety. So, though there are no local laws specifically regulating you to not fly your toy over populated areas, emergency personnel, and accident scenes – but I must argue that it can be inferred from other existing laws that operating a Phantom 2 Vision in the manner which you did, probably violates some sort of public safety law that I hope the Hartford District Attorney finds and applies to this case. The FAA outlines their stance on that matter here. Furthermore – NO, this does not fall into the fictional war on cameras by police, as there is no such war. I’d know as I make my living as a photographer. Perhaps the Police have a war on bloodsucking “journalists” that exercise selfishly poor judgement thereby placing others needlessly in harm’s way.

“As long as we’re persistent, I hope in five years that this will be common,” said Rivera. – If people like you persistently do things that lack sound judgement in order to fulfill your own very selfish motives, then in five years what will be common are a great number of restrictions to the use of personal Drones, Quadcopters, and MultiRotors in general. The restrictions will be even worse for Journalists. I don’t want idiots with flying machines to become a common thing.

“Last I checked, this was not a police state,” Rivera wrote in a note. “Fly safe and responsible, but do not allow anyone to stop your freedom or right to cover events, or something as simple as your satisfaction of flying high.” – …and that’s why we are going be hit with some strong laws regarding private and commercial Drone usage — because Mr. Rivera thinks that he was flying in a safe and responsible manner. Flying is not a right, that’s your first mistake sir. It is a privilege that comes with a high level of responsibility, which most people just don’t grasp until something goes terribly wrong. When flying any type of machine of any size (barring paper airplanes), you must always consider the worst case scenario and weigh it against the reward for the flight you will undertake. Worst case when flying a 2.5 pound DJI Phantom Vision over a populated area = something fails and it falls straight down out of the sky and injures a person in a freakishly serious manner (prop in eye, baby in carriage, etc..). Upside to Mr. Rivera’s flight operation = he gets to show his news team or friends pretty pictures he took at a fatal accident scene. Risk does not equal reward, in my opinion – and the situation begs the question: Does Mr. Pedro Rivera actually have the right to decide that it’s OK to put complete strangers under this sort of potential risk? I think not, and I believe that many attorneys would agree with me.

What does one actual attorney say?

“The act of creating expressive or newsworthy content, including the taking of photographs from public spaces, is protected by the First Amendment regardless of the equipment used,” said Brendan Schulman, a New York lawyer. “Some state legislators who recently have proposed blanket legislation restricting drone photography appear to have overlooked First Amendment considerations. I am surprised that news agencies have not been more proactive about this issue, as important rights are at stake in the regulatory process.”

FAA regulations currently state that unmanned aircraft cannot be operated for commercial use. Hartford Police stated, “The presence of a drone at a crime scene for journalistic purposes is in violation of FAA regulations.” While Mr. Rivera denies that he was working as a journalist at the time he was flying, this author seriously doubts that he’s telling the truth. Unless a person has some sick fascination with crime scenes, there’s not really any good reason to give the police and medical personnel working on scene anything else to deal with. As a human being, I myself can tell that “hey, maybe this is a little inappropriate, you know – flying my toy over a dead person and a bunch of cops and EMTs.” But as we well know, many journalists aren’t human. Just turn on the TV for proof.

So, the BIG question remains: Should reporters have a First Amendment right to use drones? Maybe. But if so, they should be required by very strong laws to adhere to very specific operating parameters in this pilot’s opinion. Safety should always be the number one priority.

More photos by Mr. Pedro Rivera that demonstrate that he’s clearly willing to fly over people, cars, and buildings:
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In a recent PR stunt, Amazon.com claimed that it would soon be making small package deliveries by way of drones. They named their new service Amazon Prime Air. If the mainstream media knew everything that would be involved in making this a practical and realistic operation, their stories and reports may have had a different spin. Then again, Amazon has enough clout to get publicity when and where they want it and, let’s face it – all you need to do is mention “drone” and they’re all over it. Drooooone… What the whole thing amounts to is a clever marketing trick to get some attention during one of the busiest shopping times of the year: Cyber Monday.

I am not knocking Amazon as a company, I think they’re great at what they do. I myself order most consumer goods from them. But I must call them out on this claim of theirs and thank them for giving me a little laugh about how gullible, ignorant, and lazy our media personnel have become. Yes, we all want to believe that drones delivering packages to us is something that will happen soon. It is a damn cool idea and we all want our hoverboards, flying cars, and everything else Hollywood Sci Fi films have promised us. But hit the brakes! Delivery via drone isn’t going to happen any time soon for Amazon or anyone else. It’ll take some time. From the perspective of someone who’s been a Commercial Pilot for over 10 years and has been flying MultiRotors for just over 2 – I present to you 10 reasons why Amazon Prime Air just won’t fly:

1. Lack of FAA regulations governing drones and their operators. Specifically, we need some regulations governing the operation of small scale aircraft (such as MultiRotors) that would be tasked with flying unsupervised in the vicinity of people and metropolitan areas. I say “need” because you can’t trust random unregulated humans with maintaining public safety if there are no guidelines to follow. Humans just wouldn’t act responsibly enough if there were no rules. See the idiot in Manhattan for more details on that.

2. Our current equipment is not airworthy for operations over populated areas. Pending creation of the aforementioned FAA regulations, operators will have to ensure their equipment meets very specific standards to carry out a flight over a populated area. Since those standards have not yet been outlined it is my educated guess that the equipment currently available will not meet such standards. Every real aircraft has an Airworthiness Certificate, and I think commercial drones undertaking delivery jobs would also require such a certificate.
3. It is financially unfeasible. Now Amazon has a lot of capital, but I don’t think they just plan to burn it. At this time, MultiRotors are not safe enough to fly autonomously for the purpose of package delivery without direct supervision and monitoring. This would mean that every delivery drone would require a delivery drone operator. Grossly inefficient and expensive. I also don’t know of any insurance companies that would cover this type of brand new operation at a reasonable rate. Amazon could, of course start their own insurance company if they don’t already own one.

4. Single component failure can bring down an aircraft. With current MultiRotor technology, in most cases – a single component failure can bring an aircraft right out of the sky. Lose a motor, hit the ground. Lose an electronic speed controller, hit the ground. Lose a flight computer, hit the ground. Most parents would not want to have to send their kids out to play with the warning: don’t get smacked in the head by a falling drone! We cannot have drones without redundant systems and advanced fail-safes flying around near the public.

5. Inadequate battery life. Our battery technology just isn’t there yet. Current power efficiencies just will not cut the mustard for a delivery mission. Most folks I know fly 7-12 minutes, with a few capable of 20-25 using 2 Lithium Polymer (LiPo) batteries. Throw a little package on there and the flight time will be even lower. So before we talk about drones making deliveries, what we need is better battery and motor technologies. Efficiencies must be indcreased. Want to make some $$$ – invent a more efficient power system for MultiRotors.

6. Sensor and flight control technology needs to catch up to our collective imagination. The types of control board/sensor interfaces that we’ll need are under development but just do not exist in a finished format right now. If they do, I haven’t heard of them. Think about it what a lone flying delivery drone will need to be able to contend with on say a 15 minute delivery flight.. The poor flying robot machine will be cruising around all alone. That little baby needs to be able to detect and take input from data such as gps coordinates, altitude in MSL and AGL, obstacles, moving obstacles, live vs. dead obstacles, sounds, faces, symbols, and all the other things that we all detect and react to when we leave the house. So I am thinking we’ll need items on board that go past GPS and barometers such as: radar altimeters, ultrasonic range finders, visual recognition hardware, and infrared cameras or sensors.

7. Political and social opposition. If you think Google glass met some resistance, think about how some communities will react when you tell them Amazon is planning on flying drones over their homes. There will be community meetings, calls upon the Mayor’s office, and protests over something like this. I think delivery by drone is cool, but I’m pretty sure some of my neighbors would have issues with the whole notion.

8. Battles between commercial operators and regulators have not even begun. So let’s say the FAA passes all the regulations and it’s legal for commercial operators such as Amazon.com to deliver things via drones. Great! No, complex. Lets say Amazon want’s to deliver, but so does FedEX, and UPS, and Joe’s Drugstore, and the Taco Hut, and…well you get the picture. Do regulators limit airspace that will be used for drone delivery? Do they limit the number of operators? Does bidding or a lottery take place? We can look back at the history of the airline industry to see how things worked out for them. Deregulation had a huge impact on every carrier. Will drones follow a similar course? A lot of things must be decided.

9. The USPS, UPS and FedEX just won’t have it. Will any preference be given to say the USPS, UPS, DHL, and FedEX in the making of any of the rules, regulations, laws, and other things that are to come? They’re already in the business of delivering our packages. How would this impact their business, and should it not naturally just be an extension of what they already do? Will the USPS lay off Chin, my awesome, dedicated, professional mailman? Stay tuned.

10. People will steal them for parts and surprise packages. Hey, I grew up in Brooklyn so I’m just saying – put free stuff up in the air and someone’s going to try and claim it!

If you want to be even more amused, listen to the claims these two rocket propulsion engineers made. I hope their textbook come on cd’s or memory sticks, because they won’t be lifting any accounting class textbooks any time soon:

Great news in the world of MultiRotors! e-volo just accomplished a successful series of test flights with their new full sized two seat MultiRotor, the VC200 also known as the Volocopter. Only 2 years after their first manned MultiRotor flight with the VC1 (see video below) they have completed a more refined prototype which includes a fully covered structure and a partially enclosed two person cockpit. They expect to prepare it for production in the coming years.

Indoor testing included multiple flights totaling 20 minutes of air time at altitudes of up to 22 meters. The e-volo team claims that some battery capacity did remain after the tests. Reading through their full blog post about the flight it seems that they were all quite pleased with these initial results. They were particularly surprised by the lack of visible vibrations from the on-board HD footage that was captured. They end their release with this statement: “Nearly all problems of normal helicopters are thereby solved.”

While I am thrilled to make this news posting, I would say that while they may think they’ve solved all the problems of normal helicopters, they’re about to encounter a whole new set of problems that arise when you try to throw 2 humans in a full sized MultiRotor and expect for it to fly safely for a useful period of time. My first thought is always redundancy. Before you catch me zipping to and fro in a full sized MultiRotor, waving to hot babes on the beach – we need to discuss systems. Based on my experience with real aircraft it is my opinion that there must be the following redundant systems: power supply, thrust, flight control. In the case of MultiRotors, I believe that it is imperative that these systems each be capable of operating independent from one another to keep the copter in the air in the event of single and multiple failures.
I am certain that e-volo is considering these issues as some of them are mentioned briefly on their Safety Concept page. I am very curious as to the details of how their systems operate, but for now those details are probably being kept in house. They do mention a recovery parachute, but having an old school pilot’s mentality, I would like to know that an aircraft parachute is only there as a final option if all else fails. However, technology may come far enough that a system like a dual ballistic recovery parachute system may be enough to rely upon as a primary safety measure. We’ll see as things progress.

That covers my take on safety. Once the machine is safe to fly, the next question is – can it be practical to fly? By practical I mean – 20 or even 30 minutes of flight time is not something that can be called useful. I firmly believe that the flight time question must be answered by new battery technologies. An article I read on Mashable outlines one such technology which uses 3D nano-structures in lithium ion based batteries, but the technology is still in development. No matter how great of a full sized MultiRotor any company constructs, I do not think they’ll get very far unless current battery power efficiencies are greatly improved.

The title should read Ron Howard: On Filmaking, but having grown up with Happy Days playing on the tube – I will forever associate this man with the famous television show. That being said, when I look at the incredible selection of enormous films he has worked on, his accomplishments as a director far overshadow his early acting career.

In this brief clip, Mr. Howard gives us some insight into how he got started in the film industry. He talks about the power of editing and shares some great thoughts that are applicable to any aspiring filmmaker. A few pieces of advice particularly resonate with me. One is his recommendation that anyone who plans direct films should take a few acting classes and even be in some plays. Having acted in the show Line and a few of side projects, I can honestly say I found that being an actor is one of the most difficult things to do well. I myself was a pretty bad actor, but working with the cast of Line taught me a lot about the process, studies required, and what actors go through do their jobs. It was one of the most interesting periods of time in my life and I was lucky enough to work with some very dedicated, non-pretentious people.
In the video Ron also says something simple, but so true – “taste and judgement, that’s what it’s all about”. I laugh when folks go out and buy the most expensive gear available, only to find that the gear doesn’t have nearly as much impact as the execution of great ideas and writing, which are things you cannot buy as an independent filmmaker. The last piece of advice that stuck with me is probably my favorite. When you find a scene you like in any film watch it with sound first, and then watch the footage without sound. This will help you break the scene down into a series of shots and more clearly understand what was done to capture those images. Sounds ultra simple, but it really works. I even found this useful when reviewing videos from my quadcopter. The footage takes on a different life when you kill the sounds of the props, airflow, and motors. It’s helped me isolate my crappy footage from the good stuff. No sound – try it, you’ll like it.

So take your mind off of MultiRotors for awhile, kick back, relax, and listen to what ole Ron has to say about being a director and filmmaker.

Please be warned, the video below is very graphic, so if you have a weak stomach – skip it.

As more new people get into MultiRotors and drones a very important topic needs to be addressed – Safety. The two videos on this page illustrate in a very blunt manner, just a few of the risks involved in operating these machines. Simply put, if safety practices are not learned very early on – a person can easily injure themselves or someone else. In the top video, the poor fellow essentially injures himself by forgetting to unplug the battery before picking up a faulty machine. He was left with stitches and nerve damage. In the video below, a photographer flies a small quadcopter into the groom’s head while filming at a wedding. Only minor injuries with this one, but it could have been worse. Both accidents would have been avoided if basic safety protocol was followed.

MultiRotor manufacturers are working overtime to put user friendly MultiRotors in the hands of more of the mainstream populous because it’s good for their business. The are readily using phrases such as “can be flown by anyone”, without really considering that they may in fact be placing a lightweight weapon into the hands of an idiot who possesses little to no judgement. The problem for us non-idiots is the same as it has been since the dawn of man…some idiot is going to ruin the fun for the rest of us, and soon. There needs to be some sort of safety education that occurs whenever a new person decides they want to put a MultiRotor into the air. I would say that part of the responsibility to provide this safety education should rest with those companies who decide to build and sell “easy to fly” MultiRotors. The rest of the responsibility rests with our government and with our current community of flyers. To do my part, I finally got down to starting the learning section of this website — and guess what the first part covers?
I am certain that when the Federal Aviation Administration gets down to making laws/regulations surrounding the commercial usage of drones and MultiRotors, they will leave very little to an individual’s subjective judgement. Get ready for that if you plan to operate your copter or drone for business. Now I dislike new rules just as much as the next guy, but in the case of things that fly around in the sky, rules are a necessary evil. Why? Well, because you cannot trust your fellow human being to exercise good, sound judgement. I know, it’s a shocking fact that people must be told things like – NO it’s not ok to fly long range FPV at 4000 feet in airspace used by commercial and private aircraft because if you have a midair collision you could flame out a jet engine or cause a pilot to lose control of their real aircraft and that may kill real people. Sadly, that’s the kind of stuff people do when there aren’t any consequences for their actions. So big brother has to take their little hand and guide them. The laws/rules/regs are coming – stay tuned.

The government will make these laws to insure public safety, or to at least make the public feel safe. I am certain that some of the regulations they’ll create will govern the type of aircraft that may be flown and the equipment those aircraft must carry. This will open up some new doors for businesses interested in cashing in on this new realm. Things we may see in the near future regarding FAA aircraft equipment requirements go are items like redundant computer and thrust systems, automatically deployed ballistic recovery parachutes, and propeller guards. Manufacturers have already begun working on these features, but we are some way off from having these be standard safety items included in every MultiRotor that is flying for business or pleasure.

So when you hear about the tacocopter, pizza delivery, or the laughable textbook delivery service that someone is attempting to start-up in Australia. Please realize that we’re a long way off from having MultiRotor aircraft that fly around without a human watching their every move and that we are nowhere near the power to weight efficiencies needed to make any of those business models anywhere near viable. Those folks are just looking for attention from the mainstream media and other fools that will listen to them.

I recently spotted the newest quadruped robot under development by Boston Dynamics and it reminded me of a little robotic quadcopter a friend had recently shown me (see video below). For those of you unfamiliar with Boston Dynamics, they are funded by DARPA and seem to be doing some of the most advanced research and development work in the realm of robotics. If you haven’t seen one of their mechanical monsters at work, you will be shocked the first time you witness one in action. The clip above demonstrates one of the latest model in their series of 4 legged robots – it’s called the WildCat. This machine is capable of bounding and galloping strides and has reached a speed of 16mph – remarkable considering how large it is.

In the future I am sure we’ll see some melding between the worlds of robotics and MultiRotors. Practically speaking, I think it is essential to integrate robotics if MultiRotors are to be used for utility purposes such as lifting objects or performing more complicated tasks like repairs. We’ll see where it goes from here and possibly even take part in some of the future development! One thing is for sure – things are going to start to get really interesting in the next few years. Strap a huge quadcopter to the back of that WildCat and look out! For now what we have for you to see is a small quadcopter outfitted with folding mechanized arms and 4 legs it can sort of walk around on. Not very useful, and a grossly inefficient tradeoff between additional weight as it applies to increased functionality. This is how ideas start though, so hat’s off to the designer of this little quadcopter:

You may be asking yourself why you’re looking at a video of Ricky Gervais on this MultiRotor website. Well, what initially got me involved in these addictive flying machines was the notion that some day I’d be able to capture beautiful video footage from my maniacal copter creations. Ironically, I’ve been so involved in building, experimenting, and hording these machines that little real production work has occurred up to this point. Soon. Lately I’ve been reminding myself repeatedly that nothing will materialize unless I sit down and start to write things again.

I feel this video speaks the truth as it touches on a simple observation about writing that may help both myself and other aspiring MultiRotor filmmakers. Also, I’m a fan of Ricky Gervais and really do enjoy his brand of humor. Both editions of The Office television series amuse me, and whether or not you’re a fan the show I think it is fair to say that the writing behind it is unique and well executed.

I’ve been paying close attention to recent outflow of MultiRotor videos being published online and what I notice is that everyone who flies copters is extremely pleased with having the ability to capture beautiful aerial footage. However, very few are using that footage to tell a cinematic story. Lately, the question I’ve been asking myself is this: now that I have the ability to capture images and footage from quadcopter – how will I use that ability to help tell a story. The answer – start writing.

I’ve told all my friends that it was bound to happen sooner or later, and sure enough it happened today – a MultiRotor fell out of the sky and onto a busy New York City street. It nearly hit a businessman, who was on his way home from work. “My first thought was, ‘Someone’s done something reckless,’ ” the man told ABC/7. “They made an active decision to fly something that they don’t have control over, obviously, through the most crowded city in the most crowded time of the day.”

As you’ll see in the news video above and full video below, the operator of this DJI Phantom Quadcopter is clearly a novice and had no business flying over an area known to be congested by commuting human beings.
News sources say that the NYPD is investigating a complaint of reckless endangerment. There is no question in my mind that the action of flying this machine over a crowded NYC street is irresponsible and reckless. Had someone been injured, I believe the action of flying this quadcopter over a NYC street would be prosecutable and also make for a nice civil lawsuit. I may sound pessimistic, but that’s my next prediction – that unintentionally, some idiot will injure someone because they are irresponsibly flying over people.

I think it is ok to take risks with one’s own skin, but when you fly over people with a machine that could fall out of the air due to any number of causes – you are putting the people below at unreasonable risk. Any MultiRotor, no matter the components – or cost, may fall out of the sky unpredictably at any moment. I’ve seen it happen on numerous occasions and it has happened to me. That’s why they should never be flown over people.

Today as I was browsing my Facebook account aimlessly my eyeballs came across a little post from DJI. It read “We’re happy to announce a change to the price of the Phantom!” My first thought was “Oh no, please no — now we’re going to have even more irresponsible people buying these ready to fly (RTF) QuadCopters and operating them without regard for persons or property on the ground.” Then I thought about a little similar looking copter recently released by Walkera in the beginning of August. I tried to remember the price for that little beast. The copter is the Walkera QR X350 and it is priced at $449 in a RTF configuration similar to that of the DJI Phantom. It is one of three potential competitors out there at the moment for DJI’s Phantom. The other two are the Blade 350 QX priced at $469, and the IdeaFly Apollo, priced at $569. Up until today, all were priced below the DJI Phantom’s going rate of $679.
How does DJI welcome new entrants to the Market? By crushing the competition with a drastic price cut. DJI dropped the price of the Phantom from the original $679 by $200 to $479. In my personal opinion, that is going to pretty much take Walkera’s, IdeaFly’s, and Horizon Hobbies’ entrants out of the picture. For those that were on the fence between purchasing one of these little white plastic abominations, the choice has just been made even easier. There’s no longer any need to spend an extra $200 or so. Now if you want to procure the QuadCopter with the larger user base and longer list of available accessories the price is much more reasonable. So will people experiment with the new kids on the block or just go with a solution that is already proven to some extent? DJI knows the answer to that question. Smart business move, right? Market share is everything. Or is it?

Well…if I purchased a DJI Phantom a month ago or even a week ago for $679, I’d be one pretty pissed off camper right now. But hold on, DJI cares about all you past suckers (customers) out there. They want to make you happy if you’re someone who purchased a Phantom before September 9th, 2013. They’re not going to leave you hanging in the prop wash. DJI is offering those unlucky saps that purchased a Phantom before September 9th a credit voucher of $150!!! Great right? Well, it doesn’t equal the $200 price drop, but it’s something. Something is better than nothing, so now at least you can spend that money on something else that’s useful. Wrong. The voucher is only good if you use it to purchase the brand new DJI Phantom II or Phantom Vision.

It seems to me that DJI doesn’t think its current customers are too intelligent. They also seem to think that if you purchase a DJI product it must mean that you’d like to shackled with a ball and chain so that you’ll keep purchasing DJI products. If I had personally purchased a Phantom before September 9th, I wouldn’t be too happy with DJI right now. I’d also have no desire to use my $150 voucher to purchase a new, improved Phantom that they’ll probably just cut the price of in a few months. Customers like to trust the companies they purchase products from, and moves like this cause consumers to quickly lose trust and feel taken. Nice Job DJI.

Today 3D Robotics (3DR) announced Iris — an advanced quadcopter with full GPS-guided autonomous capabilities. Iris is designed to provide an “out-of-the-box” flying experience that brings the power of professional grade aerial robotics to the mass market.

Well it’s not quite out of the box ready yet though – thus my skeptical title. Reading a little further than the first paragraph of their press release and making it to their purchase page, I quickly learned from the big red text that the initial release of this platform is meant for developers and experienced operators who want to help in the overall development process. I guess it’s acceptable nowadays to pay $700+ to be part of the testing and development crew. To each his own, and good luck folks!
The red text on the purchase page also states that these little quadcopters will in fact be ready to fly out of the box, so I have a feeling that some of the folks making the purchase will not necessarily be as advanced as 3DR would like them to be. It is becoming apparent that companies like DJI and 3D Robotics want to bring RC MultiRotors to the masses in easy, user-friendly formats. But as those of us with some experience in this realm know that there is currently no MultiRotor platform that is truly turnkey and problem free. Some level of knowledge is needed to safely and pleasurably operate these little beasts, despite what DJI would have users believe. Yes, I’m poking at the way they market the Phantom.

My first thought when I saw the 3DR press release was that now DJI has some competition chasing them down for the mainstream consumer market. I think it’s a little way off though, as the Iris may scare away brand new users where the Phantom is something your little sister can fly. We’re early in the game now and there will only be more players at the table as time passes. The race is truly on to create the most user friendly consumer platform. We’ll be watching.